Restoration of 17th Century Painting Reveals Image of Beached Whale
- 10 years ago
The recent restoration of a 17th century Dutch painting revealed a previously obscured image of a beached whale.
The recent restoration of a 17th century Dutch painting revealed a previously obscured image of a beached whale.
For years, the work, ‘View of Scheveningen Sands’, painted by Hendrick van Anthonissen, appeared to be a rather uneventful depiction of people gathered on a beach.
That is, until a conservationist tasked with its general cleaning got a close look at it.
The technician at the University of Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam Museum was removing yellowed varnish from the surface when she noticed that a section of the painting wasn’t part of the original work.
As she chipped away at the added layer of paint, the actual picture the original artist had painted began to emerge.
By the time she was done, it was clear that the people on the beach weren’t gathered there randomly at all.
They were, in fact, all grouped around a beached whale.
It’s unclear when or why the changes were made, but it’s believed that the whale was brushed over in the 18th or 19th century before the artwork was donated to The Fitzwilliam Museum.
The motive for doing so was likely to make the piece more appealing and saleable as a piece of home decoration.
The recent restoration of a 17th century Dutch painting revealed a previously obscured image of a beached whale.
For years, the work, ‘View of Scheveningen Sands’, painted by Hendrick van Anthonissen, appeared to be a rather uneventful depiction of people gathered on a beach.
That is, until a conservationist tasked with its general cleaning got a close look at it.
The technician at the University of Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam Museum was removing yellowed varnish from the surface when she noticed that a section of the painting wasn’t part of the original work.
As she chipped away at the added layer of paint, the actual picture the original artist had painted began to emerge.
By the time she was done, it was clear that the people on the beach weren’t gathered there randomly at all.
They were, in fact, all grouped around a beached whale.
It’s unclear when or why the changes were made, but it’s believed that the whale was brushed over in the 18th or 19th century before the artwork was donated to The Fitzwilliam Museum.
The motive for doing so was likely to make the piece more appealing and saleable as a piece of home decoration.